Jakim snub by ‘25 prominent Malays’ suspicious, says Utusan

(Malay Mail Online) – The rejection by 25 retired senior civil servants of a religious authority’s invitation to discuss issues contained in their open letter to Putrajaya raises questions over their motives, an Umno-owned Malay daily said in its editorial today.

Writing under the collective pseudonym “Awang Selamat” in Mingguan Malaysia — the Sunday edition of Utusan Malaysia — the editors said it was perplexing that the group would willingly issue an open letter on Islam in the country, but then decline to meet with the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim)

“Awang does not understand, they were honourably invited by Jakim but they refused to attend as if something were amiss. Which raises yet another question, what is their true motive and who is backing them?” read the editorial.

In a statement yesterday, Jakim said the group of 25 had told the department that they do not plan to meet with it to discuss concerns on the position and enforcement of Islamic law in the country that they noted in their letter.

A spokesman for the group, Datuk Noor Farida Ariffin, said there was “no point” seeing government officials for now, until at least after they meet Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Utusan’s editors today claimed that the concerns raised by the group did not reflect the collective view of Muslims in Malaysia, as the group’s position was akin to challenging shariah law.

The editorial suggested that the group of 25 may not even realise that they are being used by supporters of an “aggressive” push towards liberalism and pluralism.

“Awang is drawn to the suggestion to study their backgrounds. What more with claims that some of them are known to practice a very liberal lifestyle while in the civil service,” it added.

In a strongly-worded open letter earlier this month, the group of 25 influential Malays called on the federal government to review Shariah criminal offences and assert the supremacy of the Federal Constitution over Islamic state laws in the country.

The group, comprising some of the country’s most senior-ranking civil servants who have since retired, expressed its dismay over the unresolved disputes on the position and application of Islamic laws in Malaysia, which it said reflects a “serious breakdown” of the division of powers between the federal authority and the states.